Adventures in Grandparenting

grandma

When I was little my grandmother lived on a large piece of land, probably more than a half-acre with lots of trees and vegetation. Running along one of the property fences were blackberry bushes. I am not sure if she planted them or they were there when she moved in. When the berries were ripe, we were out there picking them. With four grandchildren picking and eating they were gone in a matter of days. My grandmother didn’t care, she knew we liked them. It is a nice memory of summers at grandma’s house.

At my house I have a huge raspberry bush. Last week the berries started to ripen. I was excited about it, so I arranged for my grandchildren to come over for lunch. Afterwards, grandpa took them both out to the bush and picked the ones that were ripe.

It is a very prickly bush but the berries are delicious and worth the peril to obtain them. My oldest granddaughter picked them last year and was excited when I told her some of the berries were ready to eat. The youngest one doesn’t quite understand the difference between a ripe berry and everything else. She still wanted to participate, so she kept picking the unripen fruit. This time next year they will both be picking and eating the raspberries…along with grandpa.

Hopefully, they too will have warm memories of picking and eating berries in the summer at grandma’s house. 🙂

I’ve changed. I am not sure exactly when it happened, but it happened. As a younger mom, raising children, I used to be a bit more uptight about stuff and less patient. I used to get embarrassed about things much easier. I was more no nonsense and not always quick to understand. What happened to me?

I became a grandparent!

People joke about playing with the grandkids and then sending them home. However, we do have a marvelous opportunity to provide special and memorable experiences to those unique people we call Grandchildren.

Last weekend I put up our Christmas tree. I was satisfied with just adding twinkle lights and several strings of beads. But my husband thought I should put on a few ornaments. I ignored his suggestion, until I found out my 2 1/2 year old granddaughter was coming over for the evening. I thought she might like to help me put on a few decorations.

I pulled out the kid durable Christmas ornaments (no breakable bulbs). I left the hooks in the box, because I didn’t want her sister, who just started crawling, to try to eat any that we might drop. We sat in front of the tree with the box of ornaments; she wanted to discuss each one as they were unwrapped. She then took each ornament by its string, went to show grandpa, came back and added it to the tree. She was delighted when she actually got it to stay on a branch. I let her put them where she wanted – they ended up on three heavy laden branches. It was fun. I enjoyed it and I think she enjoyed it. The next day, I brought out the hooks and rearranged all the ornaments, so the tree looked more even.

Twenty plus years ago, I did this same thing with my youngest son, when he was three or four. However, at that time I was dismayed that he wouldn’t listen to me, as he insisted on putting all the ornaments on the same branch. We ended up fussing about it quite a bit. I was trying to “teach” him the proper way to add the decorations to the tree! After all, it is an important life lesson, he can’t grow up and not know how to properly balance out all the ornaments on his Christmas tree! Oh, my gosh…how silly is that? To my embarrassment, he still remembers that event.

The grandma lesson I learned last weekend – Don’t sweat the small stuff. Enjoying the moment is more important than getting it perfect.

A grandbaby shower? I had never heard of anything like this, until recently. But let me tell you, I think I’m a fan.

Once my two boys were older, past toddlerhood, I got rid of my baby stuff. I either gave it away to new parents or tossed it because it was worn out. Even cherished items that made it into late childhood (or early teen-dom – sorry Nate) like a favorite blanket, can only be stitched together so many times before it has to be pitched. So when my first grandchild was on the way, my house was void of ANY kind of baby stuff and had been for almost two decades. Was I worried? Was I concerned? Did I give it much thought? Nope.

Then came the baby shower for my first grandchild. My son and daughter-in-law surprised me with a portable crib to keep at my house. My good friend presented me with my very own diaper cake, which included all kinds of baby goodies. It was so thoughtful, but all the while I was thinking, where I was going to store this stuff? Well, in the last three years, I have used up the diapers, plus more, and all the other fun stuff that was included in the diaper cake. I know exactly how to open and close the crib quickly and efficiently, since I have done it more times than I can remember. Actually, most of the time it stays open and ready in the guestroom. I have also added to my own baby equipment collection.

These are some of the helpful items I have purchased for my house: a jumper (a swing that hangs from the door jam – a great invention), a car seat, a high chair, a few baby clothes to keep on hand, sippy cups (a must), some small blankets, a toy chest and of course toys. My husband’s favorite purchase is a handful of extra-large (for whatever age they are at the time) plain white tee shirts. Anytime he feeds them he just pulls one over the top of their clothes and removes it when he is done. No muss, no fuss and the babies outfit remains clean. It’s like a baby body bib.

Do I recommend throwing a grandbaby shower for the new grandparent in your life? Absolutely! It would be fun and very much appreciated.

What baby supplies do you suggest for new grandparents?

please note: the product links in this post are affiliate links for products that I actually use and recommend.

Photo credit: handmade charm by ScrapheartGifts. You can find this beautiful charm at their Etsy store.

When I was a little girl, my grandmother had a big tomato patch in her backyard. That is what she called it, I imagine because she grew up on a farm in Missouri. Looking back now, I realize that what she called her backyard was probably more like an acre of land. The plants were arranged in rows and columns, making a nice, neat rectangular pattern. All she grew were tomatoes. As a child peering into the patch, it looked more like a dense forest of stems and leaves than a garden plot. My grandmother would send me into the middle of it (where she couldn’t easily reach) to pick the ripe tomatoes. I am sure I disappeared from view once I was in the middle. Eventually, I would emerge with an arm full of juicy, ripe tomatoes. We would fill the old, large mixing bowl and then head inside to the kitchen. There she would make us tomato sandwiches for lunch.

If you haven’t tasted a juicy, ripe tomato picked fresh from the garden or had a tomato sandwich made from them…you are missing out. Until I was a young adult, I didn’t realize a home grown and a store bought tomato could taste so different. But they do! Besides picking them from your own personal garden, delicious, home grown tomatoes can be found at the local farmers market. Pick some up, you won’t be disappointed. Here is a super, simple recipe for making a tomato sandwich (like my grandma made for her grand kids – back in the day).

Making a Vintage Tomato Sandwich

Toast two slices of bread (toasting is not necessary)

Slice a ripe tomato into thin slices

Generously spread mayonnaise onto the toasted bread

Then layer the tomatoes on top of the mayonnaise (sprinkle with salt if desired)

Today I might add slices of avocado and a variety of lettuce or spinach leaves. But that is not how we ate them, decades ago, in my grandma’s kitchen. Yum!

Did you eat tomato sandwiches growing up?

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I'm a wife, mother and grandmother. I like to tell stories, laugh and dole out advice. Find your reading glasses, get comfortable and join me on A Grand Journey.